Revolutionary War Quotes

We have lots of great Revolutionary War Quotes
for you from the time of the
American Revolution and Beyond! You might think quotes from America's
Founding Fathers would be rather dry and uninteresting... but you would
be wrong! Our Revolutionary War Quotes pages are some
of the most viewed pages on our site! Why would this be? The answer is
that many people in today's world are digging in to the original
writings of the Founding Fathers to find out what they really believed.
What was their vision for America? What role did they want the
government to play in people's daily lives? What were their views on
slavery, religion, free speech and many other issues? All of these
things are very important subjects to people in today's world. By
studying the Founders of this nation and their beliefs, we can better
understand where we came from, what our purpose is, where we should be and most importantly, where we want to go in the future.

This page has a sampling of our Revolutionary War Quotes. There are George Washington Quotes, Benjamin Franklin Quotes, Thomas Jefferson Quotes and quotes from other important Founding Fathers. If you would like to read more from any of them, you can click on the link at the bottom of that person's section and you will be taken to a complete listing of quotes by that person listed in chronological order. Our Revolutionary War Quotes come from the Founders' own personal letters, documents,
speeches and writings. You can learn all kinds of things about their
intent for the government of the United States, what they believed on
important topics, even their personal opinions about other Founders!
Take some time to read through some of these Revolutionary War Quotes and you will undoubtedly learn some things you did not know about their vision for America!

George Washington Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

There are lots and lots of wonderful quotes by George Washington,
the leader of the Continental Army against British forces during the
American Revolution and the man who would become the first President of
the United States. Some of these quotes from George Washington will actually prick your conscience and make you think twice about your own personal integrity! Here is a sample of just a few Revolutionary War Quotes by George Washington, but we have lots more as well. Just click on the link at the bottom of this box and you will be taken to our complete George Washington Quotes section:

"Labour to keep alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire, called conscience." - 110 Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation, 1737

"Nothing is a greater stranger to my
breast, or a sin that my soul more abhors, than that black and
detestable one, ingratitude." - Letter to Governor Dinwiddie, May 29, 1754

"By the all-powerful dispensations
of Providence, I have been protected beyond all human probability and
expectation; for I had four bullets through my coat, and two horses shot
under me, yet escaped unhurt, altho' death was levelling my companions on every side." - Letter to John A. Washington, July 18, 1755

"To be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace." - First Annual Address to Congress, January 8, 1790

"All see, and most admire, the glare
which hovers round the external trappings of elevated office. To me
there is nothing in it, beyond the lustre which may be reflected from
its connection with a power of promoting human felicity." - Letter to Catherine Macaulay Graham, January 9, 1790

Benjamin Franklin Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

There are a lot of great Revolutionary War Quotes by Benjamin Franklin because he was a prolific author and publisher. Benjamin Franklin gained international
reknown due to his studies regarding electricity. He became a prominent
American diplomat to France and England, served as governor of
Pennsylvania for a time and served in the Continental Congress. His name
appears on both the Declaration of Independence and United States Constitution. A sampling of Revolutionary War Quotes by Ben Franklin is listed here, but you can click on the link at the bottom of this box and go to our complete Benjamin Franklin Quotes section where you will find lots more:

"I am for doing good to the poor,
but I differ in opinion of the means. I think the best way of doing good
to the poor, is not making them easy in poverty, but leading or driving
them out of it. In my youth I traveled much, and I observed in
different countries, that the more public provisions were made for the
poor, the less they provided for themselves, and of course became
poorer. And, on the contrary, the less was done for them, the more they
did for themselves, and became richer." - Relating to prices and the poor, 1766

"Whoever shall introduce into public affairs the principles of primitive Christianity will change the face of the world." - Letter to the French ministry, March, 1778

"The married state is, after all our
jokes, the happiest, being conformable to our natures. Man and woman
have each of them qualities and tempers in which the other is deficient
and which in union contribute to the common felicity. Single and
separate, they are not the complete human being; they are like the odd halves of scissors; they cannot answer the end of their formation." - Letter to John Sargent, January 27, 1783

"Here is my Creed. I believe in one
God, the Creator of the Universe. That He governs it by His Providence.
That He ought to be worshipped. That the most acceptable service we
render to Him is in doing good to His other Children. That the soul of
Man is immortal, and will be treated with Justice in another Life
respecting its conduct in this. These I take to be the fundamental
points in all sound Religion, and I regard them as you do in whatever
Sect I meet with them. As to Jesus of Nazareth, my Opinion of whom you
particularly desire, I think the System of Morals and his Religion, as
he left them to us, is the best the World ever saw, or is likely to
see." - Letter to Ezra Stiles, President of Yale University, March 9, 1790

Thomas Jefferson Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

Some great Revolutionary War Quotes come from Thomas Jefferson, one of the most well known of America's Founding Fathers. Thomas Jefferson was a proud Virginia planter and lawyer who stood six feet tall and had red hair. He wrote the Declaration of Independence, served as America's ambassador to France for many years, became the first Secretary of State under President George Washington and eventually became the third President of the United States himself. Here are just a few of our Revolutionary War Quotes by Thomas Jefferson. If you would like to read more, click on the link at the bottom of this page and you will be taken to our complete list of Thomas Jefferson Quotes listed in chronological order:

"Every government degenerates when
trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves,
therefore, are its only safe depositories." - Notes on the State of Virginia, Query 14, 1781

"And can the liberties of a nation
be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a
conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift
of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I
tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice
cannot sleep for ever." - Notes on the State of Virginia, Query 18, 1781

"Give up money, give up fame, give
up science, give the earth itself and all it contains rather than do an
immoral act. And never suppose that in any possible situation, or under
any circumstances, it is best for you to do a dishonorable thing,
however slightly so it may appear to you... From the practice of the
purest virtue, you may be assured you will derive the most sublime
comforts in every moment of life, and in the moment of death." - Letter to Peter Carr, August 19, 1785

"If we can prevent the government
from wasting the labors of the people, under the pretence of taking care
of them, they must become happy." - Letter to Thomas Cooper, November 29, 1802

"It is a wise rule and should be
fundamental in a government disposed to cherish its credit, and at the
same time to restrain the use of it within the limits of its faculties,
"never to borrow a dollar without laying a tax in the same instant for
paying the interest annually, and the principal within a given term; and
to consider that tax as pledged to the creditors on the public faith." -
Letter to John Wayles Eppes, June 24, 1813

Thomas Paine Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

There are many inspiring Revolutionary War Quotes by Thomas Paine. Thomas Paine wrote some of the most influential writings that inspired the American Revolution, including his works Common Sense and The American Crisis.
He also wrote some things later in life that were reviled by the same
patriots that praised him during the Revolution. Here are just a few Revolutionary War Quotes by Thomas Paine. If you would like to read more Thomas Paine Quotes, simply click on the link at the bottom of this box and you will be taken to our complete Thomas Paine Quotes section:

"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it." - The American Crisis, No. 4, September 11, 1777

"The times that tried men's souls
are over-and the greatest and completest revolution the world ever knew,
gloriously and happily accomplished." - The American Crisis, No. 13, 1783

"He that would make his own liberty
secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates
this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself." - Dissertation on First Principles of Government, December 23, 1791

"If, from the more wretched parts of
the old world, we look at those which are in an advanced stage of
improvement, we still find the greedy hand of government thrusting
itself into every corner and crevice of industry, and grasping the spoil
of the multitude. Invention is continually exercised, to furnish new
pretenses for revenues and taxation. It watches prosperity as its prey
and permits none to escape without tribute." - Rights of Man, 1791

"A thing moderately good is not so
good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but
moderation in principle is always a vice." - The Rights of Man, Part 2, 1792

John Adams Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

There are many great Revolutionary War Quotes by John Adams. John Adams was called the Colossus of Independence by Thomas Jefferson because of his philosophical and intellectual leadership during the American Revolution. He was Vice President under George Washington and was elected the 2nd President of the United States. John Adams
wrote many short works and was a prolific letter writer, so we have
lots of quotes from him. Especially great are the many letters between
he and his wife, Abigail Adams. Here are just a few Revolutionary War Quotes by John Adams. If you would like to read more, you can click on the link at the bottom of this section and you will be taken to our complete John Adams Quotes section, where you will find quotes from his entire life listed in chronological order:

"It ought to be commemorated, as
the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It
ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports,
guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent
to the other from this Time forward forever more. You will think me
transported with Enthusiasm but I am not. I am well aware of the Toil
and Blood and Treasure, that it will cost Us to maintain this
Declaration, and support and defend these States. Yet through all the
Gloom I can see the Rays of ravishing Light and Glory. I can see that
the End is more than worth all the Means. And that Posterity will
tryumph in that Days Transaction, even altho We should rue it, which I
trust in God We shall not." - Letter to Abigail Adams, referring to the day the Declaration of Independence was signed, July 3, 1776

"Objects of the most stupendous
magnitude, and measure in which the lives and liberties of millions yet
unborn are intimately interested, are now before us. We are in the very
midst of a revolution the most complete, unexpected and remarkable of
any in the history of nations." - Letter to William Cushing, June 9, 1776

"We have no government armed with
power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality
and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge, or gallantry, would break the
strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our
Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is
wholly inadequate to the government of any other." - Address to the Military, October 11, 1798

"I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of
Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May
none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof!" - Letter to Abigail Adams, referring to the White House, November 2, 1800

"National defense is one of the cardinal duties of a statesman." - Letter to James Lloyd, January, 1815

James Madison Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

James Madison
is often called the Father of the United States Constitution. Many of
his quotes actually follow the period of the Revolutionary War. Quotes
by
James Madison mostly center on the Constitution, but this website is called
"Revolutionary War and Beyond" because it covers the entire founding period of the United States, including the time after the war when the country was in it's infancy. Here are just a few Revolutionary War Quotes by James Madison. If you would like to read more, there is a link at the bottom of this section that will take you to our complete series of James Madison Quotes from his entire life, listed in chronological order:

"Happily for America, happily, we
trust, for the whole human race, they pursued a new and more noble
course. They accomplished a revolution which has no parallel in the
annals of human society." - Federalist No. 14, November 20, 1787

"It is impossible for the man of
pious reflection not to perceive in it [the Constitution] a finger of
that Almighty hand which has been so frequently and signally extended to
our relief in the critical stages of the revolution." - Federalist Papers, No. 37, January 11, 1788

"The powers delegated by the
proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined.
Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and
indefinite." - Federalist Papers, No. 45, January 26, 1788

"An ELECTIVE DESPOTISM was not the
government we fought for; but one which should not only be founded on
free principles, but in which the powers of government should be so
divided and balanced among several bodies of magistracy, as that no one
could transcend their legal limits, without being effectually checked
and restrained by the others." - Federalist No. 48, February 1, 1788

"There is not a shadow of right in
the general government to intermeddle with religion. Its least
interference with it, would be a most flagrant usurpation. I can appeal
to my uniform conduct on this subject, that I have warmly supported
religious freedom." - Journal, June 12, 1788

"Is there no virtue among us? If
there be not, we are in a wretched situation. No theoretical checks-no
form of government can render us secure. To suppose that any form of
government will secure liberty or happiness without any virtue in the
people, is a chimerical idea, if there be sufficient virtue and
intelligence in the community, it will be exercised in the selection of
these men. So that we do not depend on their virtue, or put confidence
in our rulers, but in the people who are to choose them." - Speech to the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 20, 1788

Patrick Henry Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

Patrick Henry
was a fiery patriot leader from Virginia. His "Give me liberty or give
me death" speech is one of the most well known sayings of the
Revolutionary War. Patrick Henry served as governor of Virginia twice. He was an opponent of the United States Constitution,
believing that it gave too much power to the federal government at the
expense of the states. Because of this, he played an important part in
requiring the Bill of Rights
to be added to the Constitution to help define the rights of
individuals that were protected from federal interference. Here are just
a few Revolutionary War Quotes by Patrick Henry. There is a list of more Patrick Henry Quotes at the link at the bottom of this section:

"It cannot be emphasized too
strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by
religionists, but by Christians not on religions, but on the gospel of
Jesus Christ! For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been
afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here." - Speech to the Virginia House of Burgesses, May, 1765
"The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave." - Speech in the Virginia Convention, March 23, 1775
"Is life so dear or peace so sweet
as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it,
Almighty God. I know not what course others may take, but as for me,
give me liberty or give me death!" - Speech in the Virginia Convention, March 23, 1775
"If you speak of solid information and sound judgment, Colonel Washington is, unquestionably the greatest man on that floor." - Comment on George Washington, October, 1775
"The view which the rising greatness
of our country presents to my eye is greatly tarnished by the general
prevalence of deism which with me, is but another name for vice and
depravity. I am, however, much consoled by reflecting, that the religion
of Christ has, from its first appearance in the world, been attacked in
vain by all the wits, philosophers, and wise ones aided by every power
of man, and its triumph has been complete." - Letter to Betsy Aylett, his daughter, August 20, 1796

Samuel Adams Quotes -Revolutionary War Quotes

There are many thought provoking Revolutionary War Quotes by Samuel Adams,
one of the most influential people behind the American Revolution.
Adams served in the Continental Congress and signed both the Declaration of Independence and the Articles of Confederation,
the first governing document for the newly formed United States. Adams
went on to become Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts under Governor John Hancock and succeeded Hancock as governor. Adams was a prolific writer so we have lots of Samuel Adams Quotes available to us today. Here are just some of the Revolutionary War Quotes by Samuel Adams. If you would like to read more, you can click on the link at the bottom of this section and go to our complete list of Samuel Adams Quotes:

"Neither the wisest constitution nor
the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose
manners are universally corrupt." - Essay in the Public Advertiser, 1749

"Religion in a Family is at once its
brightest Ornament & its best Security. The first Point of Justice,
says a Writer I have met with, consists in Piety; Nothing certainly
being so great a Debt upon us, as to render to the Creator &
Preserver those Acknowledgments which are due to Him for our Being, and
the hourly Protection he affords us." - Letter to Thomas Wells, November 22, 1780

"He who is void of virtuous
Attachments in private Life, is, or very soon will be void of all Regard
for his Country. There is seldom an Instance of a Man guilty of
betraying his Country, who had not before lost the Feeling of moral
Obligations in his private Connections." - Letter to James Warren, November 4, 1775

"Courage, then, my countrymen, our
contest is not only whether we ourselves shall be free, but whether
there shall be left to mankind an asylum on earth for civil and
religious liberty." - Speech at the State House, Philadelphia, August 1, 1776

"We have this day restored the
Sovereign to whom all alone men ought to be obedient. He reigns in
Heaven, and with a propitious eye beholds his subjects assuming that
freedom of thought, and dignity of self-direction which He bestowed on
them. From the rising to the setting sun, may His kingdom come." - Speech at the State House, Philadelphia, August 1, 1776